100. BAD DISKS: If you have a portable disk or two that just won't
mount in your portable drive, you may have lost your data but maybe not your money.Check your
portable drive documentation, look for the manufacturer's free 800 numbers, and go to the
company's web-site. Often you can get free replacement disks and save $15-$20 per disk. The same
replacement policy frequently applies to program disks gone bad, and replacements often contain
an upgraded version of an older program.

101. SQUEEZED FOR SPACE?: If you have a compressed
hard-drive and the Drivespace program [usually in the Windows folder], you may be able to add a
few more megabytes to your hard-drive. Open Drvspace.exe; from the Menu Bar select "Advanced"
then the "Change Ratio" option. If you are at the limits of allowable compression ratio, select
"Drive" from the Menu Bar and choose "Adjust Free Space" between the compressed drive [usually
C:\] and the host drive [usually H:\]. Move the slider to the far left to add more space on the
hard-drive.

102. BUILD A LIBRARY: When you want to change a file extension icon or shortcut
icon, the usual default is the program's standard icon or one from a "dll" file which is often
just a plain Windows symbol. You can make your own library of icons and customize the look of
shortcuts and Windows Explorer directories. Many of the "icon extractor" programs [which are
plentiful and free on the WWW] also have a feature which allows the user to make their own icon
library in the form of a "dll" or "icl" file. Gather your favourite graphics that you want to use
as icons from all your disks into a single library [a dll or icl file]. Then put the file on your
hard-drive; new pictures can be added at any time and old ones deleted. If you have an artistic
bent, you can make your own icons with a Paint program and add them to your library.

103.
CREAKY CURSOR: Is your cursor just creeping around; even cleaning the trackball does not seem to
improve anything. Check your mouse settings in the Control Panel to adjust the pointer speed. If
you somtimes have a hard time locating the cursor when reading or working on a text file, open
the Keyboard icon in the Control Panel to increase the cursor blink rate. Many laptops also ship
with OEM trackball/mouse software which allows you to reset the distance the cursor will move in
relation to a movement of the trackball. Set these values up the maximum. If you have configured
your browser settings to warn for cookies and if you have enabled "Smart Move" where your cursor
automatically moves to the next dialogue item, this can be annoying when surfing the web. Before
going online, disable "Smart Move".

104. RENAME README: Windows has several "Readme.txt" files
in many folders; many applications have their "Readme.txt" file also. Readme has become the
conventional information file which is fine, but with many applications on your hard-drive and
portable disks, the large number of readme.txt files can be a source of confusion. Also when you
move/install files and applications, a readme.txt may inadvertently get over-written. {To find
out how many "readme.txt" files you have, use the Find option [Win 95] on the Start Menu, or
Tools/Find from the Menu Bar [Win95] in Windows Explorer, or File/Search from the Menu Bar
[Win3.x] in File Manager.} To customize the readme.txt files, rename them with a title which is
descriptive of its governing application.

105. DRIVE BY CONTENT: When you create new files, the
default location is often the folder of the application that created the file or just the Windows
folder. That approach scatters files of similar content or subject through-out the entire list of
files. Try a "content-driven" file structure instead - that is similar categories of personal
documents are filed by subject such as correspondence, taxes, medical, insurance regardless of
the application[s] that created them.

106. EXPORT REPORT: If you use financial/investment
software, such as Quicken or MsMoney, the Reporting function can be used to add informative data
to your file system. On a regular basis, create Income and Expense reports using your financial
software by those categories for which you maintain personal folders. For instance, if you have a
folder named "Taxes" [which may contain files of correspondence, tax forms, scanned documents of
tax returns, bills, receipts, etc], create a "Tax Expense Report". Using the Report function of
your financial software, select the pertinent tax expense categories to create a "Tax Expense
Report"; then export the report in text or spreadsheet format to your "Taxes" folder.

94. GAS POWER=12 VOLTS: Many airlines are now outfitting with
laptop outlets. You can use several other types of transportation to power your laptop. First you
need a 12 Volt DC adapter [about $100]; most auto cigarette lighters will accept these adapters.
In addition other 12 volt vehicles such as travel trailers and boats either have 12 volt outlets
or can be easily fitted with these outlets since most have 12 volt systems along with standard
110 volt AC. Even a generator can be used to run a laptop while charging its battery, the 12 volt
system battery and run other appliances. But be careful - generators can surge especially when
called on to power up an air conditioner. Use a good surge protector, and try to plug in to a
receptacle that is on an isolated breaker.

95. 2000 READY: If you have an older portable
computer, when the year 2000 comes your machine may not recognize it properly. A good first
resource is your computer manufacturer's website. Often they have lists of which machines are
year 2000 compliant and which are not. They also may have BIOS update software that will correct
the inability to recognize the year 2000 properly. Other resources include free testing software
on the WWW such as "2000.exe" by National Software Testing Laboratories which tests your system's
BIOS for year 2000 compatibility. Also there are free fix-it programs such as "Year2000.com" by
the Right Time Clock Co.

96. GET YOUR HANDS DIRTY: If you use an inkjet printer you know that
new ink cartridges are often very expensive. If you don't mind a little messy work [or you can
use surgical gloves], buy ink refills for your empty cartridges.Many computer supply
catalogues offer refills at prices which are 50% or less than new cartridges.

97. HIDDEN
WEB-SITES: Sometimes when you access a web-site on certain servers [such as Geocities and Tripod
which offer free web space], an advertisement page appears rather than the site you targeted. The
page you want is "behind" the ad page. To show the page you want, either click on the upper left
corner of the ad page or hit Alt-Spacebar and select Close from the drop-down menu.The ad
page will disappear and the page you want will appear.

98. TAKE A MEMO: If you regularly use
spreadsheets, sometimes it would be advantageous to make an entry for information purposes only
similar to the "non-add" key on a calculator. For instance if you keep your checking account on a
spreadsheet and want to reflect the receipt of a check that you endorsed to a second party, make
a MEMO entry that will not affect the checking account balance. To do this, make a regular entry
in the description column with the word MEMO in the number column. In the deposit/credit column,
precede the amount with an apostrophe [']. The apostrophe converts the amount to a text entry.
Other uses of a MEMO entry in a Checking Account include cash expenditures that you may want to
keep a record such as car repairs/maintenance, medical prescriptions, and charitable
contributions. Investment activity in a brokerage account such as dividends, interest, and
purchases/sales of securities can also be recorded as MEMO entries. A comprehensive checking
account record with supportive MEMO entries can serve as the principal source of financial
information when preparing one's yearly income tax returns.[NOTE: If you want to hide the
apostrophe that "disables" the MEMO entry, place the cursor in the Formula Bar just behind the
apostrophe. Hold down the Shift key and hit Backspace.]

99. IT'S IN THE WASH: If you use
financial software such as Quicken or Microsoft Money, MEMO entries as outlined above [Item #98]
will not work because only numerical entries in the debit and credit columns are acceptable.
However workarounds are available in the form of WASH entries.A WASH entry is one which has
no effect on the overall income or expense accounts. Depending on the program which you are
using, you can use a VOID entry, two offsetting entries or an entry which debits and credits the
same account. When using two offsetting entries, it is handy to create a Clearing Account whose
balance will ultimately be zero; it is used as a temporary repository of values which will be
offset by a subsequent entry. As long as the final effect is zero and a record is made, any
transaction format which your software will accept is a satisfactory platform for a Wash
entry.

90. ARISE FROM THE DEAD: When a shareware program expires because
of the time limit [commonly 30 days], if you reset your computer's date, often the program will
work. Instead of making a shortcut to the expireware's "exe" file, make it to the program's
folder. Inside the folder, create a "txt" file entitled "STOP-RESET DATE.TXT" whose contents
enumerate operable dates.Before opening the expireware, reset your computer's date. A
shortcut to the date/time function [located in the Control Panel] can also be placed in the same
folder. [Note: when making a shortcut from the date/time function, Windows95 will advise that the
shortcut will be placed on the Desktop. From the Desktop, just copy or cut the shortcut and put
it in the desired folder.]When you have finished with the program or just after you open it,
reset the date to the current day.

91. WEBSITE WALLFLOWER?: Is your web-site lonely? Nobody but
you ever seems to stop by for a look. A little free self-promotion is in order:

List your site with Search Engines and Directories. If a description of your
web-site is requested, use Keywords which cover broad categories.

92.
LOST DLLS: Sometimes after a "crash" or re-installation of the Operating System, certain system files may be lost
which are needed by some of your older programs. Old system files such as "mfcoleui.dll" or
"cmdialog.vbx" may turn up missing. There are a few places you can look to obtain a
replacement:

Backups of your Windows/System folder. [Backing up this folder
periodically can save future time and trouble.]

File libraries on the WWW that are
maintained by various companies and the FTP directories of such organizations as Winsite, Simtel
and Microsoft.

Web Search Engines can be useful tools for finding information about
similar missing files which other users have experienced.

93. PAGE AFTER PAGE: When you
get involved in reading a web article that goes on for page after page after page, there is a
faster way to get the entire article into your system so you can read it later at your leisure.
As soon as a page loads, scroll down to the bottom of the page and click Next Page. Keep loading
all the pages until the end of the article is finally reached. Now the entire article is "cached"
where you can read it offline. [See Item #36 for instructions on how to use your cache files.] If
you didn't have time to load all the pages of the article, when you are in the cache folder,
right click on the "Next Page" of the last page loaded. Select the function that copies the URL
to the next page in the article. Paste this URL to your Bookmarks/Favourites; next time you go
online, you can resume downloading the rest of the article.

86. RE-TARGET SHORTCUT: When you click on a shortcut that gets a
message that the target is missing, it may be because you moved the target to a portable disk.
Windows will try to find the target and even suggest an alternate location, but Windows does not
generally look on portable disks. You can select the "Browse" option to find the target, but to
re-target the old Shortcut, right click on it. Then select "Properties" from the drop-down menu.
In the Properies dialogue box, select the "Shortcut" tab; change the drive letter on the "Target"
and "Start in" lines. You can also "jazz" up the shortcut icon by selecting the "Change Icon"
option. After correcting the Drive letter, check the related "ini" file [if any] in the Windows
folder.References to the old drive letter should be changed to the new drive letter.

87.
IDLE WEB SPACE?: Do you have empty web-space from your ISP or other servers? {AOLers have 10MB
available; several providers offer from 200KB to 3MB for free.} There are a few ways to use it
other than storing a web-site.

If your correspondent has an E-mail program
that cannot handle attachments, then use the WWW to send the files. As long as you both have
access to the WWW, upload the file attachment through FTP. Then send the URL in the e-mail to
your correspondent who can download the file. Alternatively you can write an HTML page with a
download link to the attachment and upload it.

If your hard-drive is low on free space,
store files on unused web space in zip format. If you have a posted web-site that has reached its
limit of byte space, start linking additional files to a different FTP directory. If you are
taking a trip without your computer or portable drive and want access to certain files, upload
the files to your web-space.

If you like to send greeting cards [such as Birthday,
Christmas, Valentines, etc.], make up a card, upload it then send it's URL to your friends via
email. One "card" can be used for multiple recipients.

If you ever have lost the ability
to access the WWW but can still connect to your ISP, often you can still connect to FTP. From
there you can upload and download from your own directory or that of others.

Have you
lost or corrupted your web-site files on your own system or are not sure what are the last files
you uploaded? Then download files from your own FTP directory to recover them.

88. E-MAIL
COOKIES: If your E-mail server only supports plain text, then the URL addresses must be converted
to live links to access the web-sites. But with an HTML E-mail server, the links are live; this
is very handy and time-saving. But there is a price to pay - COOKIES. Since HTML e-mailings are
much like web-pages, the sender often attaches "cookie" files with the principal "letter". The
e-mail cookie looks similar to a web-site cookie such as this one received while using the
Netscape browser:

The server
ad1.xyz.comwishes to set a cookiethat will be sentto any server in the domain
xyz.comThe name and value of the cookie are:SB_ID=0724099831627945631073910456382

This
cookie will persist until Fri Dec 31 05:00:00 1999Do you wish to allow the cookie to be
set?

If you accept the cookie, a line of text will be placed
in the "cookies.txt" file in the Netscape directory. Internet Explorer's cookies are in the
Temporary Internet Files folder as txt files. For further information about cookies, how to
handle them and how to set browser preferences please see "Are The Cookies Watching You?"

89. STRIP THE
PIX: Often when browsing the web, you run across banners that have some picture elements in
animated gifs that are very attractive. You would like to incorporate these elements in a picture
of your own, but, of course, you don't want the advertising or some other elements. With a little
free software [such as an animated gif program], you can strip off those pictures you want. When
you see a banner you like, either save it directly or snatch it out of your cache folder. Using
the "animated gif" program, open the file and select the "image strip" function. The result will
be an entire strip of all the individual pictures. Save the strip in a format you can work with
[such as "gif" or "bmp"]. Now you can cut out the pictures you want from the strip using a
standard graphics program and save them as individual files with which to build your own pictures.

83. CORRUPT DATA SETS: On occasion or even more often, a data set
for a financial program becomes "corrupt"; the program's "exe"file cannot open your personal
financial data. There are various solutions/workarounds to this problem. Remember, although a
fully functional data set is the ideal condition, what you really are aiming at is the recovery
of your data which may be accessible in another format.

Replace the corrupted
set with your back-up set, if you have one. Before replacing the corrupted data-set, save it to a
new location; you may be able to recover data that post-dates the back-up set.

Many
financial programs have a restore/re-index function which can straighten out the problem.

Look in your "Temp" folder
or other locations; sometimes an improper shut-down puts your data set
in limbo as a "tmp" or other type file [such as an .01 file].

Run scandisk; part of your
data-set may be corrupted and scandisk may be able to recover it or create a useable "chk"
file.

Call Tech support; they may have suggestions. But be advised; they may charge for
data recovery and/or want you to send them a copy of your data set which exposes your private
financial data.

If you have another financial program which is "dormant", try the
export/import function.

Re-install the program from the original disk[s].

Use the
"Quick View" function and/or a word processing application to "read" the data set files. Often
you will be able to find your account names, entries and scheduled transactions which you can
re-construct into a new data-set. Most any file on your hard-drive, regardless of type, can be
"opened" with a standard word processing program; although it will act as a word-processing file
in this mode, you can recover data from it.

Future problems can be minimized with current
back-ups, running two different financial programs simultaneously [using import/export to save
time if desired], and/or periodically printing to disk or paper current financial information
in your data set.

84. COMPRESS FINANCIAL ENTRIES: If you want to track your profit/loss
but can't be bothered with all the accounts and myriad transactions, you can boil them down to
two account types and one entry per day or less. There are only two account types:

REAL ACCOUNTS - These are all the Balance Sheet accounts, that is the Assets and
Liabilities.

NOMINAL ACCOUNTS - These are all the Income Statement [AKA Profit and Loss]
accounts, that is the Income and Expense accounts.

Since a net debit [increase] to Real
accounts is a net credit [profit] to Nominal accounts and conversely a net credit [decrease] to
Real accounts is a net debit [loss] to Nominal accounts, all financial transactions over a time
period can be reduced to one. [The vernacular term "in the black" describing a Profit refers to
the Real accounts; the simultaneous condition in the Nominal accounts would be "in the red".]
Even if you only have a spreadsheet program or happen to use investment software [such as Fund
Manager, Fidelity Investments, Wealth Builder, etc.], you can create a Profit/Loss account to
emulate financial software that will track your ongoing financial activity.

85. EXIT ON CANCEL:
When trouble comes, many of us blame the computer, the operating system or the current program.
But sometimes the trouble is of our own making. There are a few simple routines you can use to
avoid these troubles:

When working in dialogue boxes, where you can change
settings or delete items, always EXIT the box on the CANCEL option unless you purposefully want
to change a setting and know what your old setting was. Do not select the OKAY option just to
close a box; exit on CANCEL; you may have inadvertently changed something.

Backup often.
And create new registry back-ups, and emergency recovery and system disks.

When working
on long files, SAVE your work at various intervals.

Don't delete files unless you are
sure of the outcome. Save a copy in a safe location until you are sure you won't need
it.

If you deleted E-mail you want to read again, many e-mail providers have an option
where you can save recent e-mail on their server. For instance for AOL, access MAIL on the MENU
Bar and select Mail You've Read/Sent; AOL will save mail up to seven days if you so
choose.

When "reading" files in their non-native applications, such as using a word
processor to open a "dll", "exe", "ini" or scandisk created "chk" file, do not save the original
file in the word processing format.

81. MASH YOUR CASH: If you use one of the popular financial
programs [such as Quicken, MS Money, etc.] and have a hard time keeping current with making the
daily entries, you can consolidate multiple cash transactions into one daily, weekly or even
monthly entry. Typically small cash expenditures account for the majority of financial
transactions, and they can be a real pain to keep track of. For example, suppose you had $50 at
the start of the week, got $100 out of the ATM machine and now have $35. You went to the grocery
store several times, the gas station, a few fast-food spots and the hardware store. You may have
receipts for some of these items and remember how much some items cost, but other expenditures
you don't remember; besides making a whole list of small entries into your financial program
isn't the most efficient use of your limited time.Rather than trying to reconstruct [and
estimate] these transactions, allocate them to various expense categories based on prior patterns
of expenditures. Review one or two month's prior cash expenditures, calculate the percentages
that constitute the major expense categories, and allocate current cash transactions by the
calculated percentages.

82. 97 CLEAN-UP: If you use financial software, before archiving the 97
data set and starting a new data set for 98, review your account balances for accuracy and
completeness. Even if not yet paid, record amounts you owe for 1997 as well as income you have
earned in 97 but not yet received.Typical unrecorded expenses/income include utilities,
taxes, interest, insurance as well as holiday purchases made by credit card and year end bonuses.
Make estimates if actual amounts are not available.

For income earned
but not received by the end of 1997, create a Receivable [asset] account. Record the expected
income to the Receivable with a credit [increase] to the applicable income account.

For
expenses incurred but not recorded/paid by the end of 1997, create a Payable [liability] account.
Record the expense to the Payable with a debit [increase] to the applicable expense account.

If you expect a material income tax refund in 1998 for 1997, record
this expected refund in 1997. This may well cause a debit, i.e. receivable, balance in your tax
liability account, but will accurately reflect the income tax expense for the year.

When
each item that was recorded in 97 to an asset/liability account is received/paid in 98, the
clearing entry is made to the Receivable/Payable account in 98, not to income or expense. If
there are differences between the original entry and the final receipt/payment, then an adjusting
entry to income/expense can be made which will clear to zero the unresolved difference.

NOTE: Most financial
software has an "archive" option. By archiving prior year's transactions, your new data set will be much smaller, your
program will run faster and the necessary periodic back-ups will take less time.

76. OPEN A BLANK: To speed up the opening of your browser and to
keep the cache folder small, open your browser on a blank page. Set the start-up preference to a
Blank Page. This works for both Netscape and Internet Explorer whether online or offline.

77.
SCAN NOT: If you scan the same type of document regularly [such as an electric bill or a mortgage
receipt] and have OCR capability, you can make a template from the "RTF" document that resulted
from a prior scan. Copy the "RTF" document's contents, such as a mortgage receipt. Paste the
copied document into a blank spreadsheet to make a fill-in-the-blanks template.Eliminate the
non-recurring information; format the cells which are to be filled in with coloured backgrounds
[or borders] and the appropriate "number" formatting such as fixed, currency, date, etc. Save the
template as a spreadsheet file and use a copy of it to fill in the recurring data in the coloured
cells instead of scanning and OCRing the document. By substituting templates, you will save time
and disk space. Even if you do not have scan and OCR capability, you can make a spreadsheet
template with fill-in-the-blanks functionality which emulates the document.

78. MAKE A RECEIPT:
If you regularly collect rent, utilities, loan installments, or payments of any kind, instead of
purchasing a Receipt Book and handwriting receipts, make a receipt template in a
fill-in-the-blanks format. On a spreadsheet template, fill in the cells with the permanent
information. Format the cells to be filled in on receipt of payment with coloured backgrounds or
borders and the "number" style of each cell such as date, text, fixed, currency, etc. After
filling in the template, save the file with a descriptive name and date. When printing the
receipt, specify "no gridlines".

79. EAZY CHECKING: There are many financial programs available
such as Quicken and Microsoft Money with a myriad of features for tracking income and expenses.
But these large programs are not for everybody for any number of reasons. Many people have these
programs and never progress further than the checking account feature. You can make your own
checking account "program" on one spreadsheet and save megabytes of disk space. A spreadsheet
with a few formatted columns will serve as a template you can use year after year. With a few
modifications to the checking account template, it can be used as a credit card template to track
charges, payments and the outstanding balance.

80. DISASTER PROOF: Backup your files is a
common caveat and it's good advice, but it can be expanded to encompass more than just computer
files.When harm comes in the form of fire, theft or other forms of natural and unatural
disasters, backup disks may fall victim as well as other property.

Store a copy of your vital
backups in a secure location; a safety deposit box is ideal.

Create files detailing the cost basis, age and
description of your real and personal property that is subject to physical disaster.Insurance companies, police
departments, the legal system and the taxing authorities may require proof of loss and original cost of lost assets.

You can use a commercial asset program, construct your own files preferably in spreadsheet form or
even create separate data sets using popular financial software for "asset information" about your property.

If you
have scanning capability, add scanned files of at least major purchases to your asset listings.

Keep copies of these
"asset information" files on portable disks in a secure location. Ideally your vital asset information
is disaster proof and, after a disaster, you can prove the value of the assets you owned.

These "asset information"
files can also be use as evidence if you are involved in an income tax or assessed valuation
dispute.